NEWS

Norway’s $1 trillion wealth fund gained $84 billion in the first quarter, or $16,000 per citizen, after it took advantage of a market sell-off late last year to build its massive portfolio.

• Return was 9.1 percent, or 738 billion kroner ($84 billion)
• Stocks rose 12.2 percent, bonds 2.9 percent and real estate 1.7 percent
• Fund held 69.2 percent in equities, 28 percent in bonds and 2.8 percent in real estate

The fund’s chief executive officer, Yngve Slyngstad, said it was an “exceptional” quarter with the third highest quarterly return on record and the highest ever in terms of kroner. He directed the fund to buy almost $30 billion in stocks in November through January to take advantage of a drop in prices and drive its holdings to near the 70 percent limit.

“The most significant change in the first quarter was probably the new signals from the Federal Reserve, which to a large degree drove the market,” he said in an interview after a press briefing in Oslo. “There have been very different views on macroeconomic developments from different actors.”

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